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Nuremburg Laws
Hitler, in attempt to wipe the Jews, created the Nuremburg Laws in 1935. These laws were named after the city that was the center of Nazism. The took away many rights from Jews such as denying Jews of German citizenship, and banning the marriage of Jews to non-Jews. The whole point of these laws was to segregate Jews at every level of society. Even though these laws were harsh towards the Jews, Hitler still wasn't happy and decided to take things even further with the persecution of Jews. -
Kristallnacht
There were many acts of violence against Jews around this time, but the most serious was Kristallnacht. It means the " Night of the Broken Glass" and it happened on November 9, 1938. It all started when a Jewish man killed a German diplomat. In response, Nazis ordered an attac on Jews in Germany, Austria, and the Sudetenland. Thousands of Jews were arrested, 200 were killed, 600 were injured and over 1,500 synagogues and 7,500 Jewish-owned businesses were destroyed. -
Pearl Harbor
On December 7, 1941, Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Half of the U.S. Pacific Fleet was in the harbor this day while several others were out on patrol. The Japanese sent in aircraft carriers as well as many airplanes to bomb the harbor, specifically anything that the US could have used in a war effort against Japan. Many people were killed as well as wounded in this attack. It brouhgt down four battelships, two destroyers, and damaged several shps. War was declared the next day. -
Battle of Midway
This naval battle severed as the turning point in the war. It put a stop to the unstoppable Japanese advance. The US had cracked Japanese code and found out they were plannng to attack Midway. So the US prepared for this and when the Japanese attacked, the US was ready to fight back. By using airplanes to drop torpedos and bombs, the US sunk four Japanese aircraft carriers which had 250 aircrafts on it and many pilots, too. -
Tehran Conference
On November 28, 1943, Roosevelt and Churchill went to Tehran, Iran to meet Stalin face-to-face for the first time. They met to resolve who and when they would start the second front in France. Churchill did not want to make a cross-channel invasion but FDR and Stalin agreed that the US and Britain should carry more of the military burden and attack Germany from the west. Churchill finally argeed. Six months after this meeting, their plans turned into reality and Operation Overlord came about. -
D Day
General Dwight Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander for this operation known as Operation Overlord. There were 21 American divisions, 26 British, a Canadian, and a Polish division involved. The plan was to attack a 50 mile strecth of the beaches in Normandy. On the beach known as Omaha, there was quite a battle. American forces landed and the Germans attacked viciously. They showered them in bullets and shells, some people never even made it to the beach. -
Battle of the Bulge
Hitler ordered a counter attack on the Allies. He ordered German soldiers to dress in US uniforms and cut telephone lines and change road signs all to confuse the Allies. When Germany attacked, there was a huge bulge in the American lines. Because this all took place during the winter, there was a lot of snow and coludy skies. The Germans almost succeeded until the skies cleared, then the Allies bombed the Germans and pushed them out Frace. This battle left Germany very crippled. -
V-E Day
After many battles between different parts of the world, Hitler became weak. His power was no longer very impactful. He gave orders but no one followed them. He was shaken and paranoid and on the verge of going insane. He committed suicide in late April. His death only lead to one thing, Germany's surrender. On May 7, 1945 Germany surrendered in a little French schoolhouse. This day was then known as Victory over Europe Day, or V-E Day. -
Using the atomic bomb
On this day, the US used the very frist atomic bomb in war. The bomb was dropped in the morning of August 6, 1945, in Hiroshima, Japan. The effects were almost instant. Within two minutes, 60,000 people were either dead or missing. Little did the Japanese know that just three days later, the Americans would drop yet another atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan. This bomb killed only 35,000 but its impact was just as devistating. -
V-J Day
After the two atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, there was a lot of debate in their government. There were some people within the government that wanted to keep fighting against the US. Others thought it would be best to just give up. Emperor Hirohito made the final decision to surrender. The Us celebrated V-J Day, or Victory over Japan Day on August 15, 1945. But the Japanese actually offically surrendered on September 2, 1945.
